Greece wildfires edge close to Athens as EU flags spike in carbon emissions

Wildfires that engulfed many regions of Greece have reached the outskirts of capital Athens, as strong gusts of wind caused flare-ups around the country, disrupting highway traffic and rail services.

The fires have raged across parts of the country during three successive Mediterranean heatwaves over two weeks, leaving five people dead, including two firefighting pilots, and triggering a huge evacuation of tourists over the weekend on the island of Rhodes.

Water-dropping helicopters and a ground crew scrambled early on Thursday to a blaze in Kifissia, just north of Athens, which was quickly put out. But the threat may not be over with the summer heat still in full force.

Near the central city of Volos (Golos), a wildfire burned on two fronts, forcing a section of Greece’s busiest highway to close for several hours, while national rail services passing through the area were delayed.

An elderly disabled woman was found dead inside her burned camper van in a coastal area near Volos (Golos) and a cattle farmer was killed while trying to rescue his livestock.

The industrial zone was closed Thursday as a precaution. Six communities and villages around the city of nearly 140,000 people were evacuated early in the morning, with more placed on standby.

Temperatures are expected to drop Thursday after a prolonged heatwave but near-gale winds are expected to complicate efforts to douse the fires.

Firefighters also battled flames on Rhodes for a 10th successive day, while flare-ups were reported on the island of Evia.

Wildfire carbon emissions for July in Greece were the highest by a huge margin — totaling over 1 metric megaton and doubling the previous record — since records started 20 years ago, according to the European Union agency that analyzes satellite data, the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service.

“Unfortunately, it is not all that surprising, given the extreme conditions in the region,” said Mark Parrington, a senior scientist at the agency. “The observed intensity and estimated emissions show how unusual the scale of the fires have been for July relative to the last 20 years of data.”

Period of mourning

Officials have said more than 600 wildfires have broken out around Greece since July 13.

The vast majority were tackled before they could pose a threat, the government said.

The civil protection ministry has warned of an extreme danger of fire in over a dozen Greek regions on Thursday.

In Athens, senior members of the armed forces paid tribute to the two pilots killed in a firefighting plane crash earlier this week, at a ceremony held at the Defence Ministry.

Cpt. Christos Moulas and Lt. Pericles Stephanidis died during a low-altitude water drop on the island of Evia.

Defence Minister Nikos Dendias said the operators had shown “self-denial in the line of duty.”

“Greece today is in mourning. Their memories will live on,” Dendias said.

Funeral services for the two airmen will be held in northern Greece later Thursday and on the island of Crete (Girit) on Friday.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Wednesday told the cabinet that the coming days will be "difficult as the heatwave will be followed by strong winds."

"Very high temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) and intense winds have created fire fronts of many kilometres," Civil Protection Minister Kikilias said, adding that crews were battling through "inconceivable fatigue."

Scientists from the World Weather Attribution group said this week the heatwaves that have hit parts of Europe and North America this month would have been almost impossible without human-caused climate crisis.

Wildfires across the Mediterranean

Around the Mediterranean, fires this week also flared in Croatia and Italy, and flames killed 34 in Algeria in extreme heat that has left landscapes tinder dry.

In the Italian island of Sicily, officials in some areas reported an easing of the situation on Thursday, although the regional government has declared a state of crisis following days of high temperatures and fires.

Sicily's civil protection agency estimates the fires that have swept the island in the last two days "have caused more than 60 million euros in damage".

Three people died in Italy as a result of the fires earlier this week, with investigations underway into a potential fourth victim, after a 61-year-old woman was found dead in a lift stuck for several hours in Palermo, potentially because of an electricity blackout.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government late Wednesday approved 10 million euros to compensate tourists whose trips to Sicily have been disrupted by the fall-out from the heatwave.

In Croatia, a wildfire was also burning several kilometres away from the famous walled town of Dubrovnik, in the country's south along the Adriatic Sea coast, where water-dropping planes and more than 100 firefighters held back the blaze before it reached houses overnight.

Close to Lisbon in Portugal, more than 500 firefighters continued to combat a blaze. The fire forced the evacuation of 90 people from their homes along with 800 farm animals.

The blaze near the coastal town of Cascais, 30 kilometers (19 miles) west of Lisbon, was brought under control early on Wednesday, helped by cooler temperatures.

Firefighters remained in the area to watch for any further flare-ups as temperatures and winds rose again Wednesday. Fears rose that it might spread deep into the nearby Sintra-Cascais Natural Park. No injuries were reported.